Principal Technical Program Manager

Microsoft•,

8d•$142,800 - $304,200

About The Position

At Microsoft Research (MSR), we are shaping the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure by pursuing high-risk and high-reward programs that will define the next generation of AI platforms. Our work spans the full stack, models, systems, software, and hardware, and we partner with product teams across Microsoft to turn research breakthroughs into impact at scale. Through close collaboration with industry partners, the team bridges research and production, translating hardware innovation into working prototypes and manufacturable solutions for next-generation AI infrastructure. You will join a multidisciplinary team working at the intersection of optics, electronics, photonics, packaging, networking, and AI system design. As a Principal Technical Program Manager, you will translate early-stage ideas from Microsoft Research and applied Research and Development (R&D) into shippable products and services. You will partner closely with researchers to shape technical concepts into product roadmaps, drive execution alongside Azure engineering teams to bring those capabilities to cloud AI scale, and manage relationships with external hardware and software suppliers to land critical dependencies on time and on spec. You will own program structure, technical trade-offs, and cross-team alignment from prototype through general availability. This opportunity will allow you to deepen your technical breadth across cutting-edge research and large-scale cloud and AI systems, build an influential network spanning Microsoft Research, Azure, and our supplier ecosystem, and grow as a senior program leader operating at the intersection of innovation and production. At Microsoft, our mission—to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more—guides how we partner with customers to deliver trusted, impactful solutions. With a growth mindset culture, we innovate responsibly and measure success by shared progress—people, teams, and customers. Join us to do meaningful work that changes the world and helps shape what’s next for everyone.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree in computer engineering, electrical/electronic engineering, computer science, physics, applied physics, optics/photonics, materials science, or a related field AND 6+ years experience in engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development OR equivalent experience.
3+ years of experience managing cross-functional and/or cross-team projects.

Nice To Haves

Master’s or PhD Degree in computer engineering, electrical/electronic engineering, computer science, physics, applied physics, optics/photonics, materials science, or a related field AND 6+ years experience in engineering, product/technical program management, data analysis, or product development OR equivalent experience.
Basic understanding of optics and/or photonics, sufficient to engage with researchers and suppliers on technical trade-offs in optical systems.
Ability to operate effectively in a multi-disciplinary environment.
Knowledge of networking and interconnects broadly defined - datacenter networking, high-speed interconnects, fabrics, or related areas.
Familiarity with hardware/system simulation or modeling tools.
Effective written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to clearly communicate technical results and justify assumptions to diverse technical audiences.
Knowledge of advanced packaging, co-packaged optics, or memory hierarchies.
Experience working on research or industry projects related to AI systems design.

Responsibilities

Translate early-stage research from Microsoft Research and applied R&D into shippable cloud AI capabilities, shaping technical concepts into product roadmaps with researchers, driving execution with Azure engineering teams, and managing external hardware and software suppliers to land critical dependencies on time and on spec.
Partner with MSR researchers, Azure engineering teams, and external hardware and software vendors to design technical solutions that span models, systems, and hardware. Surface the trade-offs and risks behind those choices and make data-driven recommendations to research and engineering leads, and supplier partners.
Define what success looks like for moving research prototypes to general availability, the technical bar, the launch criteria, and the cross-team commitments, and hold MSR, Azure, and supplier stakeholders aligned to it through every program milestone.
Own the program structure end-to-end: roadmap, schedule, staging and rollout plans, and governance for multi-team, multi-quarter efforts that cut across MSR, Azure, and the supplier ecosystem.
Close the loop from production back to research: validate use cases against live workloads, instrument performance and reliability metrics at cloud AI scale, and bring signal from customer engagements back to MSR and Azure teams to shape the next generation of platform investments.